Friday, June 13, 2014

The GOP's demoralizing Obamacare problem

by David Atkins

It hasn't gotten much press lately what with the developing mess in Iraq and the Eric Cantor shocker, but another poll was released showing the bind Republicans are in over the ACA. Greg Sargent explains:

So this new Bloomberg News poll will pose an additional problem to those who simply refuse to accept the reality that, while disapproval of the law remains high, the American people still want to stick with it:

What is your opinion of the health care law?

It should be repealed: 32

It may need small modifications, but we should see how it works: 56

It should be left alone: 10

So 66 percent support giving the law a chance to work with possible small modifications or leaving it alone, versus only 32 percent who want it done away with. This seems like fair wording.

Meanwhile, the poll also finds that 39 percent support the law, while 11 percent oppose it because it did not go far enough — a total of 51 percent, versus 42 percent who oppose the law because it went too far. Some have raised legitimate questions about the validity of this particular line of questioning. But taken together, all these numbers seem to support the idea that the electorate remains polarized around whether to approve or disapprove of the law, while clearly supporting keeping it in place.

Meanwhile, there is broad support for the law’s individual provisions. Sixty-five percent support banning insurance industry discrimination against preexisting conditions; 55 percent support eliminating lifetime caps on insurance company payouts for health care; and 75 percent support allowing children up to 26 to stay on parents’ policies. As always, the mandate is unpopular, but even here it’s not too bad, at 46-52. (This is only one poll, but its general findings on repeal and the popularity of the law’s provisions have been confirmed in polling for years now.)

If you think progressives are frustrated these days, consider being your average Fox News-watching rube. Your leadership both in Washington and in the media told you for years that the ACA was Satan's playground itself. You were told that America's very survival depended on its repeal. You were told that by electing enough Republicans and by forceful enough in your outrage, it would in fact be repealed. You were told that if your heroes in Congress shut down the government, the demonic forces trying to give healthcare to the unworthy would be defeated. And then you and your friends were humiliated.

Then to add insult to injury, it turns out that most of the law's provisions are pretty popular. Heck, even some of your friends are signing up and realizing that they can actually get covered by Medicaid after all, or they qualify for much lower prices and much better coverage on the exchanges. Ouch.

Your politicians told you that they would be riding a wave of anti-Obamacare sentiment all the way to an electoral tidal wave in 2016. And now you barely hear a word about it. Instead, it's an uninspiring and insipid chorus of "amnesty" and "Benghazi" and "Bergdahl."